


Periphery Memory

by SirLadySketch



Series: Reaction Commands -- Post KH3 reaction and fixit fics [3]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Canon Compliant, Gen, KH3 spoilers, Kairi is mentioned - Freeform, Roxas is mentioned - Freeform, Xion is half-remembered, friendship fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-29
Updated: 2019-04-29
Packaged: 2020-02-09 14:21:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18639859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SirLadySketch/pseuds/SirLadySketch
Summary: Set right before the first scene in KH3 with Kairi and Lea; Lea meets up with Merlin and keeps getting this nagging feeling that he's missing... something. He just can't quite put his finger on it.Minor spoilers for KH3, friendship fic, Lea-centric.





	Periphery Memory

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading over this for me, Plants! <3

Merlin was running late, but Lea was willing to cut him a little slack. You had to respect a wizard powerful enough to keep an appointment in a place that existed outside of time itself. It clearly took great skill, a deep understanding of the way things were and how they might be, and maybe just a smidge of insanity.

Of course, that meant that _he_ was kind of a genius, too, since he also figured out when the meeting was happening— and he got there with time to spare.

Lea settled in to do what he did best while he waited; he sat down, stretched out, and closed his eyes to bask in the warm afternoon sunlight. The heat eased into aching muscles, and he relaxed against the tree trunk to reflect upon the day.

He’d never admit it, but he was feeling a little tender. Kairi’d managed to get some pretty good whacks in during the day’s practice, and there’d been a couple of close calls where she’d almost knocked him clear out of the ring. He’d have to train extra hard to make sure he didn’t fall behind— not that he wasn’t already giving it his all. But they’d both managed to summon and maintain keyblades during practice which had to account for something, and when he’d gotten the call from Merlin about meeting up, he’d put in a special request.

Lea took a deep breath and the heady scent of earth and leaves and flowers filled his lungs. It wasn’t so bad, waiting here. This transient world was peaceful, with rolling hills and a sea of tall trees. It reminded him a little of the untamed wilderness beyond the edges of Twilight Town proper— the forest that formed the unofficial border, growing taller and taller the farther outside of town you got. Unless you were heading to the sea, of course. He’d investigated, once, a long time ago, when they’d been talking about heading down there on their next day off, him, and Roxas, and—

The air around him shifted, a low hum of electricity and the crackle of incoming magic interrupting his thoughts. Lea quickly scrambled to his feet and stood at attention, trying to figure out where the magician would be coming from this time. There was a snap, a crunch, and a faint whiff of ozone, followed by Merlin’s head popping out of a knothole in the tree directly across from him.

"You're late old man," Lea called out, and laughed as Merlin reached out a hand for assistance. Lea gripped him and pulled, bracing a foot against the trunk for leverage, but whatever Merlin was holding in his other hand, it seemed to be stuck on the other side of the portal.

“Oh, _bother_ ,” said Merlin, and let go of Lea’s hand long enough to wiggle his fingers at the tree. With another crack of creaking wood, the knothole expanded enough to spit out Merlin’s travel case, which tumbled gracelessly onto the ground. Resistance gone, Lea fell flat on his butt while Merlin vaulted over his head.

The old man crashed into the bushes, and Lea hurried to his feet to pick him up. Merlin was up and out of them before Lea got there, brushing down his robes and straightening his beard. He coughed, indignant, and waggled a boney finger at Lea.

"Late? Balderdash! Einstein once said that—"

"Time is relative, and you can't actually be late in a place where time doesn't exist, yadda yadda yadda. I've got it memorized, old man." Lea said, then gave the wizard a more critical once over. “You ok? That was quite an entrance.”

Merlin shrugged. “A man’s dignity might be bruised, but he may continue if the spirit remains strong,” he replied. “No harm done, lad. Besides, if my calculations are correct—and I know they are, don’t give me that look— if my calculations are correct, today marks a special occasion, does it not? What’s one man’s pride in the wake of a well-earned victory?”

“Ha! You guessed right; we _both_ kicked butt today, definitely worth a treat.” Lea grinned as Merlin walked over to his bag, leaning in until he was waist-deep in fabric. There were a few echoed mutterings before he reemerged with a familiar paper bag. He handed this over to Lea, and snapped his travel case shut.

Lea beamed and ran a finger over the familiar shop seal. “Thanks, old man. You’re, like, a wizard or something.”

Maybe he was falling back into old habits, but it didn’t feel like the day’s mission was truly over until there was ice cream. Whether it was scouting, training, or just taking out heartless, nothing said ‘mission complete’ like a tasty treat. It was a habit he’d picked up back when it was just him and Isa, although Isa had always favored smoothies to milkshakes.

 _Axel_ had happened upon the sea salt ice cream bars while scouting Twilight Town, and Xemnas’ insistence that he keep track of his charges meant that the one-off treat became two, and then three. Maybe they should’ve saved more of the cash they earned while they completed their jobs, but another part of him always felt that their existence was so tenuous they should live each moment like their last. A little junk food never hurt anyone, and it was good to see them smile, Roxas and —

"It's no bother, m'boy, no bother at all," the old man laughed. He took off his hat to try dusting off some of the leaves that had gotten stuck in the fiber, but only managed to create more chaos in his wake. "But it's really not good for a growing lad such as yourself, all that sugar. You need to eat a healthy diet to help you get stronger!"

"If I grow anymore I'll have to move to the land of giants," Lea replied, opening the sack to check its contents. "Better to stunt my growth and enjoy it while I'm at it. But I’ll pass the warning along to the others, all the same."

He peeked in and saw the requested ice cream popsicles, still cold to touch. Merlin must’ve put a spell on them or the bag to keep them frosty for the trip. He hoped it would last long enough in his back pockets— he’d left Kairi to her own devices at the top of the hill with a promise to bring back her prize for beating him in the ring. A half-melted popsicle would hardly be an appetizing gift.

He pulled them out, one, two.... He frowned. Digging around in the bag, he found napkins, the receipt for the ice cream, but....

"Where's the other one?" he asked. Merlin stopped fidgeting with his hat and frowned, confused.

"The other one?"

"The other bar,” Lea explained. He gestured to the two sticks in his hand. “I _always_ buy three. One for me, one for Roxas, one for—"

A sharp thread of pain shot across his temples, cutting him off short. Merlin was at his side in an instant, patting his shoulder. The pain started to recede almost immediately, but a lingering ache burned his eyes. When he brought up a hand to try to soothe away the discomfort, his fingers came away wet with tears. Merlin made a soft chastising noise.

"It seems like you're not quite recovered from your training earlier today," he suggested. "Rest up, m'boy! You've got all the time in the world here, so you don't have to overdo it."

“No, it’s not that,” Lea insisted, and knocked Merlin’s hand away. He picked up the bag and stared at it, trying to remember. “There were three. There were _always_ three.”

“If you say so, lad, but there are two of you now,” Merlin said, not unkindly. “No need to fret.”

“I’m _not,_ it’s just…” Lea stopped, trying to find the words. “There were always three,” he finished, but he had no proof, just a feeling. No one else remembered differently—not that there was anyone else _to_ help him remember, of course—but he knew, _knew_ in his heart that he was right. A memory lost to time, fallen into darkness when Axel died, maybe. He wished Roxas was here. Roxas would remember.

But that was the thing, wasn’t it? Roxas _wasn’t_ here, and there were only two ice creams in the bag. His, and Kairi’s.

"Yeah..." Lea agreed, but he frowned down at popsicles. It wasn't _right_ , but it was just the two of them here, so... it had to be. "Yeah, you're right. Guess Kairi got me harder than I thought. Probably should make it an early night.”

But there was something, _something_ that tickled the back of his mind. A lingering memory, like a hazy film over days gone by. He always bought three. He knew this, because he remembered having to allocate more of his earnings towards a second ice cream popsicle when Xemnas assigned him to watch over Roxas, and then he had to figure in another again when he came back from the Castle and something had _shifted_ in his universe.

He remembered because the old man at the shop had said that most of his customers seemed to buy them in threes: those kids who were always hanging out in the back alley, those bullies who hung out around the Struggle ring, and then there was them, the Organization trio. Him, and Roxas, and…. It was there. Right there on the tip of his tongue, a half-remembered shadow against the setting sun and the echo of a faded laugh. But who?

He shook his head to lift some of the fog, but the memory was gone and daylight was fading fast. He tucked the ice cream away and stretched, joints popping, then looked towards the hill where Kairi waited.

“Anyway, I'd better get this to her before it melts,” he said, “Thanks for getting these for me.”

Merlin seemed satisfied that the moment had passed, but Lea’s mind was already back to chasing shadows. Or _a_ shadow, at least. Not a heartless, but a hole, an emptiness that sucked in the light. No matter how much he tried to remember, his mind slid around the gap, reminding him of the tasks at hand. The blind spot was right in front of him, but if he thought of other things, he could almost remember.  

“I’ll send Archimedes with the next meeting place and time.” Merlin promised. “If my calculations are correct, we’ll be meeting again sooner than later.” He gave Lea a critical look. “Will you be alright, son?”

Lea forced himself to focus on the wizard and smiled, giving him a thumbs up.

“It takes more than a few bumps and bruises to keep me down,” he said. When Merlin continued to watch him, he sighed. “I’ll be fine, and besides, I’ve got Kairi to watch my back. So don’t worry about us, we’ll watch for your owl.” He tapped the side of his head. “Got it memorized?”

That seemed to do the trick. Merlin patted him on the shoulder, then disappeared back into the tree, hauling his travel bag behind him. There was another crack, a pop, and then Lea was alone, the cheerful twitter of birds and chattering insects picking up again as though they’d never stopped.

Lea let his smile slide, and stared up the hill again. Kairi was waiting for him. Roxas too. And someone else, there on the edge of his memory. He couldn’t quite remember, but he knew it was important. _They_ were important. Someone else was waiting for him, and he wouldn’t stop until he remembered.

It would come to him in time.


End file.
